Asian American History 101 is a fun, family-friendly, and informative podcast co-hosted by Gen and Ted Lai, the daughter and father team. The podcast will entertain and educate people as Gen and Ted dive into the vast history of Asian Pacific Americans from the struggles they faced to their contributions and triumphs. And sometimes we cover topics of the Asian Pacific Diaspora globally.
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Sep 28, 2026 · 29:21
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 39! Our guest today is acclaimed author Autumn Krause . Her books blend fantasy, gothic storytelling, folklore, romance, and history… often with…
Sep 21, 2026 · 30:09
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 38! In this episode, we're looking at a diaspora that most people probably don't associate with Asia at all: the Romani people, or Roma. Previously…
Sep 14, 2026 · 37:32
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 37! Our guest today is Cassandra Lam, the Founder of Mama Lam's , the first American business to produce, package, and distribute a Malaysian curry…
Sep 7, 2026 · 21:07
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 36! Our guest today is children's book author, Jasmine Fang who's here to talk about her debut picture book Beneath the Same Round Moon , published…
Aug 31, 2026 · 55:46
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 35! Our guest today is the critically acclaimed UK #1 Sunday Times bestselling writer June CL Tan , author of the Darker By Four Duology , including…
Aug 24, 2026 · 32:46
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 34! This might be the world's easiest trivia question, but what multibillion dollar sport began as a fun pastime in Hawaii? If you guessed surfing,…
Aug 17, 2026 · 1:04:13
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 33! Our guest this episode is the award-winning broadcast journalist Carol Lin. Her career has placed her at the center of some of the most…
Aug 10, 2026 · 21:43
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 32! It's food time again!In this episode, we're talking about a dish that may not be as widely known… Yakamein. It's one of those dishes that feels…
Aug 3, 2026 · 25:03
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 31! Today's guest came from an artistic family, but also was literally discovered on the streets of Tokyo which gave a huge boost to his career.…
Jul 27, 2026 · 20:47
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 30! We're here to share the history of Filipino Hip Hop… Part 2. In this episode we're talking about the music from the early 2000s to the mid-2010s,…
Jul 20, 2026 · 31:23
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 29! We have an incredible returning guest who's back with us for the third time! Karen Yin is the author of several books including The Conscious…
Jul 13, 2026 · 26:58
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 28! Sometimes our topical episodes are focused on the obscure history of Asian Pacific Islanders. Sometimes our topical episodes are focused on the…
Jul 6, 2026 · 33:40
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 27! Our guest this episode is Miles Toriko Burks . He's a California-based cartoonist, writer, and illustrator whose work focuses on heartfelt…
Jun 29, 2026 · 35:49
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 26! Our guests today are Jolene Gutierrez and Chris Sasaki … two of the creators of the picture book Unbreakable: A Japanese American Family in an…
Jun 22, 2026 · 34:21
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 25! Our guests today are Livia Blackburne and Julia Kuo , the author and illustrator of Bing's Cherries … A modern American tall tale woven by a girl…
Jun 15, 2026 · 43:41
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 24! Our guest today is Lian Cheun, the Executive Director of the impactful group Khmer Girls in Action . A 1.5 generation refugee from Cambodia, Lian…
Jun 8, 2026 · 38:40
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 23! Our guest today is Eve J. Chung , a Taiwanese American lawyer and women's human rights specialist. She has worked on a range of issues, including…
Jun 1, 2026 · 38:12
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 22! Professor Ming Hsu Chen is the Harry & Lillian Hastings Research Chair and Faculty-Director of the Race, Immigration, Citizenship, and Equality…
May 25, 2026 · 35:39
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 21! Erin Entrada Kelly is a multiple award-winning Filipino American author best known for her emotionally honest and deeply relatable novels for…
May 18, 2026 · 29:02
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 20! With Christina Baal Owens is a nationally recognized advocate and nonprofit leader dedicated to advancing racial and gender justice in the United…
May 11, 2026 · 25:41
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 19! Our guest today is Sruthi Chandrasekaran. She serves as The Asian American Foundation's Director of Data and Research. She leads strategy…
May 4, 2026 · 37:00
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 18! Our guest today is the award-winning author and essayist Minh Lê . Whether writing picture books, middle grade graphic novels, or essays, his…
Apr 27, 2026 · 24:46
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 17! We love stand-up comedy as well as books with diverse representation. So we're really excited that our guest today is Patricia Park , a professor…
Apr 20, 2026 · 1:04:13
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 16! Our guest this episode is Scott Kurashige , an award-winning Author, Educator, Activist, and Public Speaker, who has studied the problem of…
Apr 13, 2026 · 37:22
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 15! Today our guests are two of the co-authors of the very cool new book Auntie Kristina's Guide to Asian American Activism … Jenessa Joffe and…
Apr 6, 2026 · 46:40
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 14! With Dennis V. Tran. Dennis is a Vietnamese American storyteller, disability advocate, and inclusion strategist whose work focuses on…
Mar 30, 2026 · 49:47
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 13! Our guest today is Professor Charlotte Brooks a Professor of History at Baruch College and the CUNY Graduate Center. She's a scholar of race,…
Mar 23, 2026 · 32:21
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 12! We're really excited that our guest this episode is Mirai , the acclaimed audiobook narrator who's also an actress, director and writer. She's a…
Mar 16, 2026 · 24:47
Welcome to Season 6, Episode XX! Our guest today is Shang Saavedra , the founder and CEO of Save My Cents, the popular site, blog, and coaching resources on personal finance.…
Mar 9, 2026 · 43:29
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 10! You'd be hard pressed to find people who have absolutely never heard of the aerospace company Boeing. But have you heard of their first impactful…
Mar 2, 2026 · 46:24
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 09! On a few rare occasions, we've invited more than one guest at a time, and we're doing it for this episode! Today's guests are Julie Leung and…
Feb 23, 2026 · 37:02
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 8! What do you get when you mix Jamaican Reggae with Hawaiian music. This isn't the set-up for a joke, it's an episode on Jawaiian music, sometimes…
Feb 16, 2026 · 41:37
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 7! Our guest today is Lydia Kang , a professor, medical doctor, and acclaimed author, Her latest book is K-Jane , and it's the story of Jane Choi, a…
Feb 9, 2026 · 23:36
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 6! We're back with Part 2 on The History of the Patel Motel Phenomenon. If you haven't listed to Part 1 which was S06E04 , then we'd love it if you…
Feb 2, 2026 · 43:57
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 5! Our guest today is XiXi Tian who is both a lawyer and acclaimed author. Her latest work is the novel All the Way Around the Sun , a YA Romance…
Jan 26, 2026 · 43:29
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 04! When it comes to immigrant groups in the U.S., especially Asian Pacific immigrant groups, it's not unusual to see certain industries become…
Jan 19, 2026 · 46:00
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 3! Our guest today is the amazing author V.T. Bidania . She is of Hmong descent and was born in Laos and grew up in St. Paul, Minnesota. A prolific…
Jan 12, 2026 · 35:42
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 2 ! Have you been caught up in the ube craze? For many people, especially in Southeast Asia, it's not a trend, it's a beloved food staple. This is…
Jan 5, 2026 · 57:16
Welcome to Season 6, Episode 01! Happy New Year! Our guest today is Peter Jae, a multi-hyphenate performer in Hollywood. Peter Jae is an actor, stunt performer, producer, and…
Dec 29, 2025 · 44:59
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 52! This is it, the final episode of Season 5! As we close out 2025, we take a moment to reflect on the guests we've had on the show as well as the…
Dec 22, 2025 · 33:04
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 51! Our guest today is the award-winning children's book author, Andrea Wang . She's written several books and been recognized with many awards…
Dec 15, 2025 · 40:54
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 50! Our guest today is doing important work in researching educational change. Dr. Ann M. Ishimaru is an award-winning scholar, writer, educator and…
Dec 8, 2025 · 43:36
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 49! Vroooommmm!!! We're exploring the story of Asian Pacific Islanders in Formula 1… and this is something we actually know a bit about. This is a…
Dec 1, 2025 · 46:27
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 48! Our guest is Karin K. Jensen. She's a local news writer for the Alameda Post and the author of the moving memoir The Strength of Water: An Asian…
Nov 24, 2025 · 53:02
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 47! We're huge fans of East West Players , and our guest this episode, Dom Magwili , has worked with them since 1974. If that's all he did, it would…
Nov 17, 2025 · 34:53
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 46! Many of our guests are multi-hyphenates when it comes to their impact in the world, and today's guest can definitely be described that way.…
Nov 10, 2025 · 25:10
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 45! Today's episodes takes us back in history to the first "great war." We're focused on the forgotten participants in World War I… This is the story…
Nov 3, 2025 · 26:07
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 44! Our guest today is Thien Ho , the Sacramento District attorney and long time prosecutor. He's also the author of the upcoming book, The People…
Oct 27, 2025 · 37:05
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 43! This episode's guest is Sheilah Jane . She's a writer, entrepreneur and wellness advocate. Her latest work is a heartfelt memoir called Shadows…
Oct 20, 2025 · 33:00
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 42! Our guest today is Brenda Do . She's a copywriter who has spent nearly two decades helping businesses communicate in a more humanistic way which…
Oct 13, 2025 · 45:56
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 41! Today's guest is award-winning author Beth Lew-Williams . She's a Professor of History and the Director of the Program in Asian American Studies…
Oct 6, 2025 · 20:41
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 40! In this episode, we explore the flavorful transformation of teriyaki—from its roots in Edo-period Japan as a fish-glazing technique to a global…
Sep 29, 2025 · 32:50
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 39! In this episode, we sit down with Ashley Du, founder and CEO of Meaningful Beginnings Childcare . From launching a modest home-based daycare…
Sep 22, 2025 · 51:54
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 38! How time flies! Its been almost two years since we last spoke to this episode's guest, author Jamie Jo Hoang ( S04E05 ). She's back to talk about…
Sep 15, 2025 · 30:15
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 37! Today we continue with the second part of The History of The Secret War in Laos. We highly recommend going back to listen to Part 1 . That's…
Sep 8, 2025 · 29:28
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 36! Our guest this episode is the New York Times bestselling author Abigail Hing Wen . She's probably best known for the book Loveboat, Taipei and…
Sep 1, 2025 · 15:35
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 35! In today's episode, we confront the stereotype that Asian Pacific Islanders are docile or apolitical—and replace it with powerful stories of…
Aug 25, 2025 · 27:48
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 34! Before reading Table for 51 , we had no idea what a "Friendship Expert" was. After meeting Shari Leid for this episode's conversation, we think…
Aug 18, 2025 · 59:27
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 33! Our guest today is Ada Tseng . She's a journalist, editor, podcaster, runner, wellness advocate and karaoke enthusiast. She is the co-author of…
Aug 11, 2025 · 38:43
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 32! We love having conversations with a lot of amazing authors of a lot of fabulous books. It's even more fun when we're able to invite an amazing…
Aug 4, 2025 · 40:32
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 31! Our guest today is Daniel Tam-Claiborne , a writer, multimedia producer, and nonprofit director. His latest work is the novel Transplants…
Jul 28, 2025 · 26:29
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 30! Today's guest is Camey Yeh, an established artist who has a cute and whimsical artistic style. Her latest work is her first picture book entitled…
Jul 21, 2025 · 48:30
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 29! Today we're joined by a true icon in the world of academia— Professor Gordon H. Chang . A celebrated historian, Professor Chang is both the Olive…
Jul 14, 2025 · 37:53
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 28! In this episode, we sit down with Michael Luo , the award-winning journalist, editor, and author of Strangers in the Land: Exclusion, Belonging,…
Jul 7, 2025 · 42:46
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 27! We have been known to be obsessed with true crime stories. So we were really excited to read L.A. Coroner: Thomas Noguchi and Death in Hollywood…
Jun 30, 2025 · 19:00
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 26! With the fall of Saigon happening about 50 years ago, it's important to recognize related additional moments in the history of Asians and Asian…
Jun 23, 2025 · 32:11
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 25! We're back with Part 2 of our conversation with the very talented Olivia Cheng . Last week, in Part 1 of the conversation , we mainly focused on…
Jun 16, 2025 · 33:10
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 24! In this episode, we have Part 1 of a Conversation with Olivia Cheng , a storyteller known predominantly for her acting, but beginning to make…
Jun 9, 2025 · 25:48
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 23! It's hard to find any other apparel that signifies vacation more than a Hawaiian shirt AKA an Aloha shirt. It's not just a symbol of going on…
Jun 2, 2025 · 28:56
Photo credit for Bobo: Kristine Cofsky Photography Photo credit for Jeremy: Studio Aviva Welcome to Season 5, Episode 22! It's a 2-for-1 episode! Today we have a two of the stars…
May 26, 2025 · 24:26
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 21! We're really honored to have today's guest Georgette Bhathena, the Chief Programs Officer at The Asian American Foundation . She's here to talk…
May 20, 2025 · 51:38
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 20! The Titanic sank over 110 years ago, but people are still fascinated with the disaster. This is especially true when there are new stories that…
May 12, 2025 · 37:35
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 19! Health and wellbeing are so important to people who want to live a more productive and fulfilling life. So it's such a thrill that today's guest…
May 5, 2025 · 26:29
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 18! We're back with Part two of A Conversation with Actor and Daily Show Correspondent Troy Iwata . This very talented singer and actor joined us…
Apr 28, 2025 · 25:19
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 17! The Daily Show is one of our favorite shows for so many reasons… hilarious segments, a diverse cast, and awesome writing are just a few reasons.…
Apr 21, 2025 · 21:56
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 16! April 30, 2025 marks the 50th anniversary of the Fall of Saigon. So we're excited that our conversation today is with Vicky Nguyen , an…
Apr 14, 2025 · 20:59
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 15! When it comes to Supreme Court decisions that impacted the classroom, most people know about Brown v Board of Education. A lesser known landmark…
Apr 7, 2025 · 32:09
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 14! Our guest today is Chef Saeng Douangdara. He's a food content creator, social media star, and soon-to-be cookbook author. Saeng specializes in…
Mar 31, 2025 · 20:03
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 13! Have you heard of Walter Tin Kit Achiu? He was the first Native Hawaiian and first Asian American to play in the National Football League.…
Mar 24, 2025 · 28:53
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 12! Today's conversation is with the amazing storyteller, activist, performer, and co-founder of the multicultural storytelling theater group…
Mar 17, 2025 · 25:43
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 11! We love dumplings, and we're not alone in that opinion. We're talking about asian dumplings… boiled, steamed, pan-fried, or deep-fried, there are…
Mar 10, 2025 · 32:32
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 10! This is Part 2 of Another Conversation with Award-Winning Comic Book Artist and Writer Sarah Myer. Last week (S05E09) we brought you part 1 . In…
Mar 3, 2025 · 30:46
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 9! Our returning guest is Sarah Myer , the amazing, award-winning comic book artist and writer who is probably best known for her critically…
Feb 24, 2025 · 22:14
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 8! Today's episode impacts AANHPI communities, but it's not necessarily solely focuses on our history. We're going to talk about The History of…
Feb 17, 2025 · 32:05
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 7! Today's guest is Fajer Saeed Ebrahim, a Senior Policy Manager at the National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum, AKA NAPAWF . If you're a…
Feb 10, 2025 · 24:53
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 6! Today we're talking about food (one of our favorite recurring themes). Specifically we're going to talk about Egg Foo Young, a popular staple in…
Feb 3, 2025 · 28:31
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 5! If you didn't hear the last episode, then go do it! S05E04 is Part 1 of this conversation with Peter Tao, one of the co-founders of the…
Jan 27, 2025 · 24:23
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 4! Peter Tao and his real life partner Helen Lee are the force behind TAO + LEE Associates, Inc. an award winning St. Louis based design firm. They…
Jan 20, 2025 · 28:13
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 3! We're back with Part 2 of The History of Mahjong. Last episode we talked about the games origins and how it came to America. In this episode, we…
Jan 13, 2025 · 24:42
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 2! Most people are familiar with the game of Mahjong. Maybe their family or community plays it or maybe they've just seen it in the movies or TV. But…
Jan 6, 2025 · 46:00
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 1! Happy New Year everyone! The Gregorian New Year, to be specific because the Lunar New Year is right around the corner… A new calendar year means a…
Dec 30, 2024 · 20:31
Welcome to Season 4, Episode 53! This is it! Our Season 4 year in review. In this episode we talk about the following… "Interesting topics we hope people listen to". These are…
Dec 23, 2024 · 29:57
Welcome to Season 4, Episode 52! Happy Holidays! This is an ICYMI Encore Episode of S03E49, Christmas Traditions in Asia and the Pacific Islands. Christmas is a holiday that can…
Dec 16, 2024 · 24:01
Welcome to Season 4, Episode 51! Wakamatsu Tea and Silk Farm Colony was the first Japanese settlement in America, but it's so much more than that. Their story is a slice of…
Dec 9, 2024 · 44:34
Welcome to Season 4, Episode 50! Today's guest is Dr. Virginia Loh-Hagan … she is an author, university faculty member, and former K-8 teacher. She directs the Asian Pacific…
Dec 2, 2024 · 26:41
Welcome to Season 4, Episode 49! In this episode, we continue sharing about the Chinese Exclusion Laws in Canada. We discuss the different politicians who promoted exclusion as…
Nov 25, 2024 · 20:55
Welcome to Season 4, Episode 48! Chinese Exclusion Laws were a dark moment in U.S. history… but they were also a dark moment in Canadian history. Chinese immigrants in Canada…
Nov 18, 2024 · 37:45
Welcome to Season 4, Episode 47! Today's guest is another popular Top Chef Alum, Chef Nini Nguyen . Born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana, Chef Nini has made a name for…
Nov 11, 2024 · 30:25
Welcome to Season 4, Episode 46! Punk Rock was most popular in the mid- to late-1970s through the middle of the 1980s. Although it hit its peak for only about a decade, it…
Nov 6, 2024 · 42:31
Welcome to Season 4, Episode 45! We have a returning guest! We were so excited for the chance to bring back award-winning author and editor Karen Yin to our show. Last time we…
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